Q: Inspiration for recipes

[NewYorkTexan]

Tom,

Where does your inspiration for new dishes come from?  Can you share some details into your creative process for developing new recipes?

Thanks and look forward to reading Welcome to my Kitchen

[Tom Valenti]

Inspiration can come from a number of places -- something I've eaten, remembered from my childhood, some ethnic influence (which is great in this great city). We take a very pragmatic approach to assembling a dish. I like cohesion among the products, obviously. I'm also very big into contrasting temperatures and textures. A simple example is a classic Frisee Au Lardons -- the cool crunch against the warm bacon. . . yahoo!